Martinpluther



Nov. 8, 1927. 1,648,853

M. P. LUTHER ELECTRIC SWITCH Filed Nov. 23, 1921 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 NNae/if MARTINELUTHER Nov. 8, 1927. 1,648,853

M. P. LUTHER ELECTRIC SWITCH Filed Nov. 23. 1921 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 4Sheets-Sheet 3 M. P. LUTHER ELECTRIC SWITCH Filed Nov. 23. 1921 l A y aV a 2 Q \6 6 5 f." 6 6 5 i 6 ,7 6 a 9 Nov. 8, 192 7.

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M. P. LUTHER ELECTRIC SWITCH Filed Nov. 23. 1921 4 Sheets-Sheet 4MARTINELUTHER M Patented Nov. 8, 1927.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MARTIN P. LUTHER, 0F 'QHTCAGO, ILLINOIS. A SSIGNOR TO SUPER-SAFETYSWITCH COMPANY; OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATIONOF ILLINOIS.

Y ELECTRIC SWITCH.

Application filed .November 23., 1921. Serial No.'517,211i

This invention relates to electric switches. The invention embodies in asimple, com-. pact, and. novel structure 'a multiple electrical switchfor use in simultaneously-com trollinga single ,or a; plurality ofcircuits in a. large-industrial plant or other structure, or forcontrolling the individual power units thereof, and in whichsafety inoperationjs the feature of. primary and utmo st,'i m portance. Themechanical embodiment illus trated and 3 to be, {described hereinafter-;com-. prises arotary multiple pole single, throwswitch, suitably'enclosedin a cabinetwith which it has an interlocking arrangement,whereby theeabineteannot be opened until the switch is manipulatedinsuch manner as to open or close the-circuit to which it is connected,and wherebygthe opening of'the cabinet locks the'switch in its openposition, thereby insuring the safety of the operator. andrendering itfool -proofv X ,1

- Among otherfeatures ofmy invention are a series of-switches having thesame axial support'from which they project at corre-' sponding angles,and fuses securely mounted thereon inv such position that they ,can beseen through an'openingin the front ofthe cabinet when the latterisclosed. The weak-: est point and the one fraught with the greatestdangers both to life'andproperty in any electrical installation and atthe same time the most important accessorv thereto, is the electricalfuse upon which the successful protection of the wires and appara' tusdepend. v These fuses are made 'in a variety of shapes and sizes andrange from the old style wire to the present day enclosed fuse. lVithall of these different fuses it is necessary to have metallic terminalsinto which they attach and also receive the ends of the circuit wires,or in case of switches and fuses combined having provisions to receiveconnections from the switch to one end of same. In my invention the endsof the switches constitute terminals that simultaneously disengage fromthe terminals of the circuit, and the fuses carried by said switches areautomatically cut out of the circuit when said switches are opened, andare only visible when dead to the circuit. Still another desirablefeature is the magazine construction of the invention, which renders itdust-proof and prevents fire by eliminating the lintthataisuallyaccumulates around switches of this character. The contactsof the switchare self alining and the princ pal parts of the switch,are removablefrom the. cabinet. for repair or to permit substitution, without. dangerto the operator, and; the switchesflare.quick-break in operation andflash-oversbetween contacts are impossiblem These and; other advantagesare accomplished ,byISmy; improvements as will beg apparentrfrom t-hefollowing detailed description andthe .claimsitaken in connection with;the accompanyingdrawings, in which Figure :1 is a plan view of theswitch em bodying the improvements ofmyinvention, showing the cabinetopen in which itis mounted,-'; Figure 2 isa transverse section taken online 2,- 2,;Figure 1, looking in the direction indicated: by the'arrowsfi- Figures?) is asimilar view, showing thecabinet; cover-closed;

.Figure4 is a longitudinal vertical section taken on line 4, 4, Figured,looking in the direction indicated by the arrows.

- 1F igure-5 is a vertical section taken on line 5. 5,. Figure 1,looking inthe direction indicated; by the arrows,-showing a side view ofonef'switch unit.-

Figure 6-isan end .view of said unit.

1 Fignre-7, is a perspective view of the cabinet in which myimprovements are enclosed.

Figure 8 is a detail section of the insulating base.

F igure'.9 is a perspective view of one of the contacts seated in saidbase.

Figure 10 is a detail view of the handle.

. Referring more particularly to the drawings, the circuit controllingdevice or switch proper includes one or a plurality of rotatable blocks5, 5, each composed of insulating material such as porcelain or thelike. These blocks carrythe male contact members and fuses, to bedescribed in detail later, and are mounted upon a transversely arrangedand rotatable square shaft 6, said blocks 5 being provided with metallined squared openings 7, as bestshown in F igure 5, that receivethe'squared shaft.

In the preferred arrangement of the switch the carrying-blocksb take theform llustrated in Figures 5 and '6,of the draw rugs, and comprise thebody portion hereinbefore designated 5, and diametrically oppositelydisposcdwing portions 8 and 9, that carry correspondingly constructedU-shaped male contact members 10, and 11, of the switch, respectively.These male contact members are arranged in pairs and are secured inopposite and parallel relation to the sides of each. of said wingportions, and have their outer margins curved so as to coincide with asegment. of a circle struck from the axis of the block. These malecontact members are oppositely arranged on the wing members Sand 9.

The-webs 13 connecting' the side port-ions 12-, 12, of contacts 10 and11 are secured to" the adjacent ends of the same edge of the-respectivewings by means of "bolts 14; which extend through suitable openings ineach wing, and'by a second bolt '15 passing through web 13, thatservestoengage and retain the base of a'fuse-clip =16; as'will be obvious fromFiguresfiand ti, and, together with bolt 14, preventsrotation of thecontact; members in thewvings; There isa fuse-clip'between'the sideportions of each cont-act member, and themet-allic end portions 17 ofthe fuses 18 are seated in said clips in the conventional way. Theopposite side faces of thewings Sand 9 of'said-bloclrs, near their outerends, andadjacent= to the basal webs of the contact members, areprovided'with recesses 19, 19,- and curved=tongucs 20, 20, areformedintegrally with the side portions'of the contact membersand extendinto said recesses, but out of contact with the walls of the same. Thepurpose-of this arrangement: is to prevent deposit of metalcaused bythe-making and breaking of the circuit at this point.

Thebloelrs 5, mountedon'the shaft 6,- are arranged on shaft 6 to rotate,in individual transverse troughs 21. 21-, formed in a rectangular pillow22. made of porcelain or other refractory material. The interveningwalls 23. 23. between these troughs 21, 21, and the end-walls 24. it. ofthe base serving: to complete this structure.

Stationary female contact members are seated and secured in each of thetroughs 21, 21, and when shaft 6 is rotated the members 10 and 11 of themale contacts pass between and rub against the lips 31.0f saidstationary contacts. The frequent use ofthese enga ing male and femalecontacts will cause a film-.of copper or brass to be deposited. upon thesurfaceof the wings, and in order to prevent this filmconducting'currentabove, insulating plate or plates43are-mountedontheouter edgesof the end-.walls 24, 24, of the-pillow.

The;stationar v female contacts above referred to areeach U-shaped andhave a rectangular attaching plate 26 that is placed against theinclined end-walls of the troughs 21 of the pillow, .in which positionthey are secured by-extensions 29 that extend at an obtuse angletherefrom and lap against and are securedto the outer surface of thepillow at the ends of the troughs by means of suitable screws, whichlatter are inserted through an aperture 30 in said extension and aretapped into the materia of the pillow and act as binding posts forconnecting the circuit conductors to the female contacts. Near the upperend of the attachingplate, 26, and just inside the plane of theextension 29 it is provided with an opening 38, through which isinserted a bolt 39, that extendsthrough' a suitable bore in the pillowandhas; its head counter-sunk in the rear surface of the-pillow. Thefemale contact has'lips3'1 that project outwards from the inclinedsideedges of its attaching plate; Theo'uteredgesof-said' lips are in aplane substantially paral'lel'to'the outer surface of thepillow'andaresubstantially at' right angles'to't-h e=ffoor of the-trough and aboutmidway the lengtfh' of "their u'pper'edges are provided with lugsthatare bent or flared laterally. These=lugs 35, and likewise lugs 3t3'atthe inner ends of said lips adjacent the fioor' of'th'e troughs, arearranged in the same-circumferential line of travel of and direct' theside portionslt), 11, of the male contacts between the lips- 31 ofthe=female contact, and form the points of make and break during theoperation of the switch. The inner end'edge'of the attaching plate 26 ofsaid female contacts, preferably midway between said-lips, has-a tongue,32 projecting; therefromthat" entersa complemental recess in the fioorof the-troughs and assists in anchoring the female, contacts andpreventing lateral motion. The inclined end walls of the troughs areprovided with grooves 40 which receive-ribs 41 in the inclined portions26, and thus prevent too great lateral displacement'of the stationarycontact members.

In order to completely house the stationary female contact members. andthe removable male contact members at all times when the switch isclosed, I provide plates 43. of insulating material, such as fiber; thatrests upon the top of the wall 24- and-24. ofsaid pillow. and said wallsbeing provided'with a series of openings 45in registration with-therespective rotatable switch elements to accommodate their passage intoand out-ofelcctrical contact with the stationary contact members.

As previously: pointed out, the switch is described'as placed inasuitable case or cabmet the latter be'ingconstructed with a lowerbottomportion' A; and an upper removable portion B. This switchisdescribed iu (leltm tail and-cla-imed in my (o-pending applica--tions; filed on even date herewith under $0- rial- Nos; 517.212 and217,213. The bottom portion Aofthe case is adapted to be secured'to astationary support, such as a wall or the like, and the removableportion B carries the switch construction in its entirety.

The operating mechanism for the switch is also carried by the section Band comprises, together with the square shaft 6 previously described, ahandle 58 mounted upon the outer free end of the shaft. The journals ofsaid shaft being cylindrical. as at 59, are seated in suitable bearingsbushing 60 for rotatably mounting it in the side wall 49 of the sectionB.

The handle 58 is operable upon the cylindrical portion 59, of the shaft6. and independently thereof for a limited distance. and a helicalspring 51, serves to connect the handle to the shaft after sufiicienttension has been imposed thereon through the manipulation of the handle,so that when the switch is moved in either direction a quick make andbreak of the circuit may be attained.

In order to properly support the base 22 in the section B of the case.said section carries a tray portion 62. to which the base is secured bymeans of screws 63 passing through integral flanges 64, formed on saidbase. The tray portion curving upwardly at 65, alOng one side, anddistorted at 66. along the opposite side. so that when the two sections,A and B, are as embled, longitudi nal pockets 67 and 68, will beprovided under the margins of the tray for accommodating conductors.which it may be desired are to go around the switch. The parallel side.portions 69 and'70 of the-tray extend up alone; and lap against the wall49 of section B, and are suitably secured thereto by a series of bolts71. 71. the said side portions 69 and 70 and walls 49. 49. beingsuitably apertured to accommodate shaft 6. A suitable latch for lockingthe switch that will be described presently, is carried on the squaredportion of said shaft adjacent the side-wall 69. The details of theconstruction of this latch are not included, as I prefer to make themthe subject-matter of a co-pendin; application.

Section B is provided with a cover or lid 7-3 for the case, and thiscover is hinged at 74 to one of the sidewalls 49 of said case,(preferably that side remote from the handle). The cover is providedwith a sight opening 75 surrounded by a frame 76 in which a glass ortransparent plate 77 is arranged, thus permitting a view of the interiorof the switch when the cover is closed. A spring latch or hasp 78 issecured at 79 within the section B, and projects through a slot 80 inthe cover when the latter is closed. and the outer free end of hasp 78having an aperture 81 for receiving a padlock or the like. A suitablehandle 82 is provided on the cover.

I provide a lock, consisting of a rotatable member, on the shaft and alatch member on the cover. the former, in the present in stance,preferably taking the form of a disk 84, fixedly secured to androtatable with the shaft 6, for locking the switch against movement ineither open or closed positions with relation to its respective circuitswhen the cover is open and for locking the cover closed when the switchis between its limits motion, one half of the circumference of thisdisk, 85, is greater in diameter than the other, 86,'the portion 86terminating in notches 89 and 90.

The latch member a segmental arm. 91, fixedly secured at 92 to the innersurface of the cover, and about half way its length it has a notch 93 inits outer edge that is adapted to engage the disk when the cover isclosed. and pass at right angles through suit able alined aperatures 94,94, formed in the side portion 69 and adjacent side wall 49; the freeend of said segmental arm having a laterally bent lug 95, forming a stopfor limiting the distance to which the cover may be opened. As pointedout above the notches 89 and 90 correspond to the full open and closedposit-ions of the switch, and are, when said switch is either opened orclosed, arranged in alinement with the body of the segmental arm 91, soas to not interfere with the opening of the cover as long as the switchis in either of its extreme limits of movement. \Vhen the cover isclosed, as will be observed in Figure 3, notch 93 in arm 91, is inregister with the disk, so that free rotation of the switch in eitherdirection to 180 of its circumference is permissible as long as thecover is closed. The shoulders 87 and 88 of the arm 91 engage the bodyof the segmental arm, and thus form the limit stops for the switch;however, as soon as the cover is opened the notch 93 of said arm ismoved out of alignment with the disk and the switch cannot bemanipulated in either direction owing to the body of the segmental armengaging one or the other notches 89 or 90 according to the position theswitch was in when the cover was opened. Thus it will be seen that Iprovide against injury to the operator. when he attempts to manipulatethe switch when the cover is opened or when he attempts to open thecover when the switch is only half way between its limits of movement.In order to lock the switch in either of its positions, a thumb nut 96is carried by disk 84 and may be manipulated to engage with the adjacentside portions 69 or engage suitable openings herein to lock the. switch.The lock is described and claimed. per se, in my co-pending applicationtiled November 23. 1921. Serial No. 517,212.

Assuming the cover to be closed the switch movement is created by thehandle 58. This movement will cause the blocks 5, assuming them to be inthe position shown in Figures 1 t0 3, to rotate through an arc of 180lit? degrees of a circle, which will bring the under surface of theblocks to the top of the base or in alinement with the plate 43, at thesame time introducing the contact members 10 and 11 between the lips 31of the stationary contact members. As the blocks 5 carry the fuses,these latter also will be swung down under plate 43, and thus the liveparts of the switch are completely hidden when the switch is closed.When the switch is opened the movable contact members 10 and 11 projectoutw rdly. as shown in Figures 1 to 3, anda're entirely out of contactwith any'live part of the circuit controlled by the switch, and thefuses being exposed to view, may be removed and replaced without anyfear of contact with the conductors.

Inorder to test the fuses, the plate 13 is provided with a plurality ofopenings 43 dis osed each above one of the connecting screws to thestationary contact members so that a' conductor may be inserted throughtheseopening'sand the fusesbridged in order to test them.

From the'foregoing it will be seen that the safety features of theinvention insure that when the operable parts thereof are conductingcurrent, they are completely housed and ordinarily inaccessible. Theswitch cannot be moved when the cover is opened, and-the cover cannot beopened when the'switch is in course of movement from one position toanother, and with this, is the feature that the fuses are arranged tofacilitate their replacement, and also to facilitate their testing.While a preferred embodiment of my invention has been described andillustrated, it will, of course, be understood that I reserve the rightto make minor changes in the details thereof, Within the meaning of theinvention and scope of the claims.

What I claim as new:

1. An electric switch having contact terminals, a housing normallyconcealing and rendering said terminals inaccessible. a circnit closingdevice adapted to be completely concealed in the housing When in contactwith said terminals, a casing for said switch having a closure memberand means for locking said circuit closing device in either itsconducting or non-conducting position when the closure member is open.

2. In an electric switch, a hollow base of insulating material having aplurality of integral partitions dividing the base into compartments, aplurality of circuit terminals within said compartments, a circuitclosing element for each compartment, a shaft common to all said circuitclosing elements. said elements makin and breaking the circuits entirelywithin said com partments, a case for wholly containing said switch, andmeans for locking the switch in either of its limits of motion whenthe'case is open.

3. An electric switch comprising a base of insulating material having arecess in its upper face. spaced pairs of yieldable con tact platesmounted in said recess each having flared upper portions, a rotatableshaft, a rotor member of insulating material actuated by said shaft andmovable in said recess, spring arms arranged in spaced relation uponopposite ends of said rotor member,

each arm adapted to engage a portion of the respective contact plates,and a fuse extending between the arms at opposite ends of the rotormember and electrically connecting the same.

4. An electric switch comprising a base of insulating material having aplurality of parallel recesses in its upper face, spaced pairs ofyieldable contact plates mounted in each recess and each plate havingflared upper portions, a rotatable shaft, a plurality of rotor membersof insulating material actuated by said shaft and each movable in one ofsaid recesses, a pair of spring arms upon each end of each rotor memberadapt ed to engage the respective contact plates in one position of saidrotors and disengage therefrom in another position of said rotor, andfuses extending between arms at opposite ends of each rotor memberandele'ctrically connecting the same.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first (31)day of October, 1921.

MARTIN P. LUTHER.

